Eventually, every homeowner finds a sizable home improvement project that they’d like to tackle. Perhaps the project is rebuilding a deck. Maybe it involves putting new concrete in the driveway.

Whatever it is, it’s big. You could tackle it yourself, but you’d be working on it after work for weeks, losing many, many hours that could be spent on other activities. So you either dig into the drudgery yourself, put it off, or, worst of all, hire someone to do it.

I suggest a different route.

A few years ago, a close friend of mine decided that something needed to be done about his cracked driveway. One Saturday, instead of putting it off yet again, he pulled a big grill around to his front yard, iced up some coolers with a bunch of tasty beverages, and invited a bunch of friends over to help. They all worked together getting the old, busted cement out of the driveway and adding a fresh new batch. One friend was a carpenter who took charge of the operation, but more than a dozen guys offered up their labor, knocking out chunks of concrete, carrying things out of the way, putting forms in place, and smoothing freshly-laid pavement. Along the way, they enjoyed freshly grilled brats for lunch and some excellent thick steakburgers for dinner.

In one day, my friend got his driveway refinished with no labor costs – his only expense was a lot of beverages and a fair amount of food. Everyone else there got two free meals, a lot of free beverages, and an afternoon spent outside with a bunch of fun people.

How can such projects work? In order to make it happen, you need to plan ahead in several different ways – but the extra planning and effort will really pay off later. Here’s what you need to do.

Always volunteer to help with projects that others are doing. If a friend of yours needs a hand with a project, don’t hesitate to burn an afternoon helping to put up a deck, assemble a shed, re-shingle a roof, or install a driveway. Even if you don’t believe you have any skills to offer, there are always things you can be doing, even if you’re merely a gofer or you wind up being the food preparer. Every task that you can help with helps the entire project move forward.

Give some advance notice. Don’t just call people on the morning you plan to get started on the project. Instead, give them a couple weeks’ notice at least, and keep track of the ones who seem at least interested. Let them know that there will be plenty of people, food, and beverages – don’t just focus on the work.

Plan out your work. Know exactly what your project is going to entail. Have all the supplies you’re going to need on hand well in advance of the working party. Have a plan in place that details what needs to be done and in what order the tasks need to be accomplished.

Be organized. On the day of the working party, get all of the supplies you’ll need out and organized before anyone else arrives, so that they can easily be found when work begins. Do some of the early steps yourself – measuring, marking, and so forth. This way, when people begin to arrive, the real work can begin.

Don’t be afraid to ask for extra help from experts. If you have a friend who is skilled at carpentry, don’t be afraid to ask for a bit of extra assistance and advice from this person. Invite them to come over earlier – and don’t hesitate to give them some gift of appreciation if they go beyond what you might reasonably expect from them.

Have a wide array of beverages available – and plenty of them. Water and sodas are good choices for earlier in the day – beers are usually good choices for the end of the day. If you’re unsure what you should get, ask people when you call them. Make sure you have more than enough.

Keep the beverages cold. Take empty milk jugs, fill them 2/3rds full with water, and fill your freezer with these jugs in the week before the party. The day before, ask around for coolers to borrow – try to get two or three of them. That morning, take out the jugs, smash them, and fill the coolers with beverages and ice. Make sure you don’t run low on cold beverages – on a warm day where people are outside working, it’s vital that you keep plenty of cold beverages available for them.

Thank everyone that shows up, both when they arrive and when they leave. This is simply good manners and goes a long way towards ensuring that people don’t leave with a bad taste in their mouth. Thank people for coming as soon as they arrive, let them know where the beverages are and when/where the food will be, and brief them on what’s going on.

Work hard. Never stand around while others are working on your project. Be involved at all times – and if you’re not directly involved, be doing something else clearly productive or purposeful. There’s no better way to sour the mood of a working party than to have the host standing around while other people are building his or her deck.

Have someone focus on food preparation. Although you’re the host, your role should be out there working as hard as anyone else on the work project. This means that, for food preparation, someone needs to give a hand. One great tactic is to simply ask someone appropriate – your spouse is a good choice, as is someone who might have a physical handicap that makes it possible for them to prepare the food, but difficult to engage in the work. Arrange this ahead of time so that it’s not a concern.

Make it fun. Have a radio available, and tune it to something that many of the people will find interesting. Growing up, when my father would have events like this, he would make sure that the radio was tuned to a baseball game of one of the local teams – this is actually a pretty good suggestion. At the same time, keep conversation going – and keep people talking. Introduce people to each other if they don’t know each other well.

If you’re called later by someone who helped you, help them. These types of exchanges are often the beginning of a long-term relationship that will be beneficial for both of you.

A working party can be a great way to build friendships, have fun, and get a major task accomplished at a very inexpensive rate – but it does require a lot of work and preparation. Good luck!

Many newer readers of The Simple Dollar haven’t been exposed to the hundreds of great articles in the archives of the site, so I’m starting a weekly series (on Saturday) that highlights the five best posts from one year ago this week, as well as the five best posts from two years ago this week. I’m calling it … the Time Machine.

One Year Ago (May 17-23, 2008)
Frugality and the Impression of Poverty – Many people shy away from frugal tactics because they don’t want to appear “poor” to others. What I’ve found is that appearances are often completely deceiving.

The Essential Bookshelf: The Only Eight Books I’ve Kept (After Hundreds of Reviews) – These really are the eight best books I’ve read on personal finance, careers, and personal development. Since then, I’ve only added a few more to my permanent shelf, even though I review a book a week and read even more.

Make Your Own Kind of Music – Here’s how to find a musical instrument for free (or for little cost) and learn how to play it for free.

Using Twitter and Blogging to Motivate Yourself Towards Personal Finance and Other Personal Goals – I’ve used both tools to aid in my financial turnaround, as well as for improving my personal health.

The Big Sell-Off – One of the first steps in my financial turnaround was selling off a lot of items in the closet, things sitting around my apartment gathering dust. Here’s exactly how I did that, balancing effort with the amount of financial return I got for the items.

Two Years Ago (May 17-23, 2007)
Review: The Millionaire Mind – This is an excellent book on the psychology of both accelerating your earnings and keeping your spending under control along the way.

If You Take Home Anything At All… Seven Fundamental Tips – These are the seven best ideas I’d found from my research on The Simple Dollar during the early days.

Ethanol Blends: Are They Worth It In Your Tank? – Even if they appear to be a bargain, they’re often not.

A Frugal Saturday: Twelve Ways We Saved Money Yesterday – This is a great glimpse into how a frugal family actually lives.

Figuring Out Exactly How Much Your Time Is Worth – Your hourly wage at work doesn’t really tell the whole story. You might be surprised how little you’re actually willing to sell your time for.

If you’d like to browse through more of the archives, visit the chronology, where all posts are listed in chronological order.

Eight Ways to Get More out of The Simple Dollar
This is kind of a FAQ for new readers and is posted each week along with the Time Machine. Here are eight great ways for new readers to dig deeper into The Simple Dollar.

1. Subscribe by email or RSS. Visiting The Simple Dollar’s website is great, but for many people, it’s more convenient to receive the articles in another form. It’s easy to join 60,000 other subscribers and get The Simple Dollar’s content by email or in your RSS feeder (if you’re unfamiliar with RSS, check out Google Reader.

2. Comment. Each article on The Simple Dollar has lively discussion. Just click on the green square in the upper right of each article on the website and join in!

3. Read my story of financial meltdown and recovery. The Simple Dollar isn’t based on what I’ve read in books or learned in school. I’ve made a lifetime of financial mistakes – The Simple Dollar is a record of what works for me during the process of getting my life on a better track.

4. Download my free 49 page e-book. Everything You Ever Really Needed to Know About Personal Finance On Just One Page is completely free. It summarizes all of the key lessons I’ve learned along the way about personal finance in one tidy package – in fact, all of the main principles can be found right on the cover.

5. Follow me on Twitter. I post tons of interesting articles, quotes, follow-up material, commentary, and other material on Twitter. Follow me! If you’re unfamiliar with Twitter, it’s essentially an open discussion forum for people to share ideas and thoughts with other like-minded folks – you just choose the people you want to listen to and their ideas and thoughts are all delivered to you on a single page.

6. Dig through “31 Days to Fix Your Finances.” 31 Days to Fix Your Finances is an article series that outlines how you can get a grip on your finances over the course of a month.

7. Send me your questions and suggestions. Send me an email and let me know what you’re thinking, what you’d like to see, and any questions you might have. I try to respond to as many emails as possible and I read them all. I may even use your question in a future article!

8. Email a great article you find to a friend. Find an article that you think your friend would love? At the bottom of each article, you’ll find a link that says “Email this” – just click on that, type in your friend’s address, and send it right along to them!

A few months ago, I posted about our decision to buy a Prius after the fact. Although I’d mentioned for months that we were actively car shopping, I waited until after the purchase to discuss it.

And the flame war was mighty potent. The post currently sits at roughly 174 comments, about equally divided between positive and negative, and I’ve received at least that many emails on the subject.

Since we acquired the Prius, though, our other “old” vehicle has largely died. It’s capable of making it around town, but drives of any distance cause it to rumble so ominously that I’m scared to drive it more than a mile or two. We’ve had it checked over twice and the conclusion has been the same – it needs thousands of dollars in parts and repairs to get the truck back to any degree of stability and reliability – and that won’t fix everything.

So, for the last two months, we’ve experimented with essentially being a one-car family. And, to put it simply, it doesn’t work.

Although I work at home most days, there are many days when I have meetings or research trips outside the home (particularly with regards to my second book).

Another key problem is that we’re likely going to have a third child in the next few years, meaning that none of our current vehicles can safely seat our family.

A third problem is winter weather. While the Prius gets incredible gas mileage, it’s not adept at winter driving in Iowa. My truck is fairly adept, but it’s not reliable at all without some significant investment.

So, we’ve started the process for buying a replacement for the truck. Luckily, as we were researching the car, we were also doing research on what we might purchase for a truck replacement.

To put it in a nutshell, we’re looking for a late model used van, (strongly) preferably with all-wheel drive. Let’s walk through some of the concerns.

Our Criteria
As I mentioned recently, our primary concerns are reliability and safety. We also require seating for five, and prefer seating for another head or two. For this vehicle, since it won’t be used for a regular commute, gas mileage is still a concern but it’s a lesser concern.

So, what does that mean in terms of actually finding a good vehicle for our dollar?

As with the Prius, we expect our best deal with this criteria to be a late model used. Our research starts there – we’re looking at 2005, 2006, and 2007 model vans, but are open to looking at both newer models and older models with limited mileage.

Since reliability is a concern, one of our bigger factors is lower mileage. Although it’s not a guarantee of reliability (nothing is), lower mileage simply means that there’s fewer miles’ worth of wear and tear on the parts on the vehicle.

Since safety is a concern and we live in a winter climate, all wheel drive is practically a requirement. Add in the factor that both of our parents live in a similar climate and off the paved road (with one set of parents living at the top of a steep hill with a gravel road that becomes like a sheet of ice in the winter) and all wheel drive is very important. Recent years have seen us borrowing a four wheel drive locally in order to make it to visit many of our relatives – my very heavy but not four wheel drive truck can’t do the trick. To put it simply, our situation strongly encourages an all wheel drive vehicle.

We’re not married to any brand beyond the reliability numbers. I’ve spent time at the library looking at individual reviews and reliability data on vans in the 2004 to 2009 model years. The picture becomes pretty clear – the Toyota Sienna is clearly at the top of the heap for all wheel drive and reliability, with several other vehicles in the next tier.

The problem? The all wheel drive Toyota Sienna doesn’t depreciate much in price, so it’s significantly more expensive at the late model used stage than other options.

Our Plan
So, what’s our plan?

First, we’re trying to maximize the value of our old truck. This involves cleaning it up and detailing it, as well as getting a small amount of work done on it to make it road-worthy over the short term. We’ll likely trade the vehicle.

Second, I’ve already begun checking out the prices on such vehicles from all dealerships anywhere near us. Most dealerships have online listings so that you at least have a good sense of their inventory. I’m not ignoring new vehicles, but as of yet the prices aren’t close enough to late model used to really have them in the comparison.

Third, I have a few friends who visit bankruptcy sales keeping an eye out for me. This is a long shot (estate sales rarely have vans), but it’s worth a chance.

Fourth, we’re not going to “over-wait” like we did with the Prius. With the Prius, we sat around waiting for the “perfect” deal to arrive – but it never did. Along the way, we wasted quite a bit of money on repairs and jumping through travel hoops, negating any benefit of waiting around for the best deal. Instead, if we find a good deal, particularly towards the end of the month when salesmen are trying to hit quotas, we’re just going to jump on it. There are costs involved in waiting for a deal that’s just a bit better.

Thoughts? Comments?

One of my favorite comfort foods growing up was my mother’s tuna noodle casserole. Here’s her recipe for it:

1 medium sized bag of egg noodles
1 large or 2-3 small cans tuna
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
1 can peas
8 slices American cheese
1 handful potato chips

Cook the noodles, then drain. Add soup, mix thoroughly. Add tuna, mix thoroughly. Add peas, mix thoroughly. Spread mixture in 9″ by 13″ baking pan. Put slices of cheese on top. Crumble chips on top of that. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until cheese is very lightly browned.

I loved this stuff growing up. We would have it every two weeks or so and I would happily eat the leftovers until they were all gone.

Naturally, with a recipe I liked so much, I started making it on my own when I moved out. I would make it roughly once a month and eat it for leftovers for three days. By myself, I could literally get five meals out of a pan.

As time wore on, I gradually began to modify the recipe a bit in order to make it healthier without reducing the qualities I liked about it. Here’s what I make today.

1 medium sized bag egg noodles
1 large or 2-3 small cans tuna
2 cans 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup (or make your own cream of mushroom soup/bechamel)
1 12 oz. bag frozen peas
8 slices American cheese (fat-free doesn’t melt well at all for this)
1 handful baked low-fat potato chips (usually Baked Lays)
1 tablespoon black pepper

Cook the noodles, then drain. Add soup, mix thoroughly. Add tuna, mix thoroughly. Add peas, mix thoroughly. Spread mixture in 9″ by 13″ baking pan. Put slices of cheese on top. Crumble chips on top of that. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until cheese is very lightly browned.

This recipe has about 12 servings in it – I’ll eat two servings if it’s the only item for the meal. Each serving has roughly 8 grams of fat, so while it’s not the most healthy thing, it’s pretty good.

It takes about 30 minutes to prepare a single pan of this casserole and the ingredients add up to about $11 per pan. (Most of the time is invested in boiling the noodles.) That creates a per-serving cost of $0.92 – not bad. I’ll eat two servings for dinner, as will my wife, and our children will each eat one serving. Then, for lunch the next day, my wife and I will each eat two more servings, then I’ll often eat the final two servings a couple days after that for lunch. All for $11 – not bad at all!

But, with some advance planning, I can not only drop that price per casserole a fair amount, I can also shave the time per casserole. Both goals are achieved using the same technique – simply making a quadruple batch.

4 medium bags or 2 large bags egg noodles
4 large or 10 small cans tuna
8 small cans (or 3 larger cans) 98% fat free cream of mushroom soup (or make your own cream of mushroom soup/bechamel)
2 24 oz. bag frozen peas
32 slices American cheese (fat-free doesn’t melt well at all for this)
4 handfuls baked low-fat potato chips (usually Baked Lays)
4 tablespoon black pepper

First, let’s go shopping for ingredients. Remember that, above, I estimated a single pan of this casserole as having a cost of $11. I went shopping at Fareway for the ingredients for four pans, and here was the result:

The ingredients for four pans cost $35.63 – or $8.91 per pan. That’s a savings of $2.09 on each pan – a total savings of $8.37. That’s definitely a good way to start!

This is a great example of how buying bulk items can pay off. Since I needed such a large quantity of each item, I was able to compare all of the prices per unit – and I chose the version with the lowest price per unit in each case. Quite often, the large bulk items aren’t sensible purchases because there’s no good use for the leftovers within the expiration dates.

The real savings, though, is in the time you save. The preparation of the casserole is much the same, just multiplied by four. First, you boil all of the noodles in a large pot:

This adds about five minutes extra time because it takes longer for the water to get to a boil plus it takes a bit longer to drain that many noodles. Then we simply add the frozen peas, the pepper, the tuna, and the soup to the mix – I save about 10% of the soup for later use. Stir thoroughly – this usually adds another two minutes or so to the time invested in a single pan because of the challenge of stirring so many ingredients.

Once it’s mixed up, I usually start pre-heating the oven, then I begin filling the pans:

I have four 9″ by 13″ pans with covers that I use for such batch casseroles. I spread the mixture evenly into each pan. Quite often, no matter how much I stir, I find that the noodles near the bottom (the bottom third or so) are drier than the ones on top, so once I’ve scooped out the majority of the mixture into the baking pans, I then add the remaining soup and stir it in before continuing. This all adds about four minutes onto the time of cooking a single pan.

Here they are, all lined up like ducks in a row:

I then cover the surface of each casserole with slices of American cheese, then crush a hand full of baked potato chips on top (to add a bit of crunch to the casserole – and a bit of distinctive flavor, too). Almost always, as soon as I finish the first casserole, the oven has just finished preheating, so I pop in that first casserole for dinner that night. Putting slices and chips on the remaining casseroles takes another ten minutes.

Here are the three finished and covered casseroles (the fourth is in the oven):

These three pans go straight into the freezer. Every three weeks or so, I’ll pop one out of the freezer the night before we intend to use it (putting it in the fridge to thaw), then bake it at 350 for thirty five minutes. Let’s say that takes a minute each time, totaling three minutes.

Thus, the total preparation time for making four casseroles at once is 54 minutes, compared to 30 minutes for a single pan. This cuts the prep time per casserole down to 13.5 minutes – a savings of 16.5 minutes per casserole!

So, here’s the real result. Preparing four casseroles at once instead of just one at a time saves 66 minutes in preparation time and $8.37 in ingredient cost. That’s both time and money straight back in your pocket.

The same general principle applies for any freezable entree you might make, from lasagna to chicken parmesan. Preparing the casserole in multiples not only saves you time over the long run, it also saves you money – and that’s the kind of bargain I like.

Over the last few weeks, quite a few readers have written to me asking about Angel Food Ministries. I’ve been very hesitant to discuss Angel Food Ministries on The Simple Dollar for a handful of reasons, but this is clearly a topic that many readers are interested in hearing about, so I’ll do my best to navigate this minefield (meaning, I’m pretty sure I’m going to say something that’s going to set someone off, though I’m not intending to). I should also point out that I have a bit of experience in the past with Angel Food Ministries on the ground – I’m personally aware of the type of items that they distribute.

What Is Angel Food Ministries?
Angel Food Ministries is a non-profit group that distributes low-cost food options in many communities (a typical basic box from Angel Food Ministries costs $30 and has approximately $55 worth of groceries in the box).

Most of the funding and organizational structure of Angel Food Ministries is handled through evangelical Christian churches in the United States. Many churches serve as distribution centers in local communities, and each box contains a leaflet that outlines some of the teachings of Jesus Christ.

What’s in the Box?
The May 2009 menu provides a clear example of what a box from Angel Food Ministries will provide:

.5 lb. Lean Chopped Beef Steaks (5 x 8 oz.)
5 lb. Leg Quarters
2 lb. Chicken and Corn Bread Stuffing Casserole (Ready to Cook)
28 oz. Salisbury Steak Dinner Entrée
1 lb. Boneless Pork Chops (4 x 4 oz.)
1 lb. Corn Dogs (6 ct.)
12 oz. Deli Sliced Ham
5 oz. Chunk Light Tuna in Water
32 oz. French Fries
1 lb. Sweet Corn
15 oz. Musselman’s Apple Sauce
15 oz. Pears (Product of U.S.A.)
8 oz. Dinner Roll Mix (Makes 8 Nice Rolls)
7.5 oz. Mac ’n Cheese
32 oz. 2% Shelf Stable Milk
Dozen Eggs
Dessert

This box is available for $30.

At first glance, this is a pretty good deal, and if your primary concern is getting food on the table at a very low price, this is likely a great option for you.

However, if you dig a little deeper, some of these options may not be the best value for your dollar. For example, I would be hesitant to feed several of the options on that list to my children on any sort of consistent basis, at least not without some careful inspection of the actual nutrition facts and ingredients of those items (the corn dogs, the “dessert” item which is often something like Twinkies or Moon Pies, etc.) Under that perspective, though, if I were to get the box, then throw out a third of the items, I might as well simply go to the grocery store at my own convenience and choose the exact items I want for my $30. Other writers have come to largely the same conclusion – it’s a value on the surface, but the quality of items may not be up to many personal standards.

Some would argue that I am somewhat looking a gift horse in the mouth here, and I agree that I am. From my perspective, this box is one option for spending $30 in food for my family. Depending on your financial situation and your food priorities, this can be a great bargain. It mostly depends on the type of value you’re seeking.

What Angel Food Ministries Does Right
One area where Angel Food Ministries hits a home run, in my opinion, is with some of their optional packages. You can choose an optional package as an addition to the basic package, as listed above. For example, one of their optional packages for May 2009 is the “Fresh Fruit and Veggie Package”:

1 head Premium Fresh California Iceberg Lettuce
1 head Premium Fresh California Romaine Lettuce
1 5 oz. Package Fresh Gourmet Classic Caesar Croutons
1 Package Wiley’s Citrus Garlic Salad Seasoning
1 lb. California Cello-Pack Carrots
2 each Premium Jumbo Vidalia Sweet Onions
1 each Premium Jumbo Red Onion
1 6 oz. Bag Premium Fresh Florida Red Radishes
1 head Premium Fresh Green Cabbage
3 lb. Premium Idaho Baking Potatoes
3 lb. Premium Tree-Ripened Valencia Oranges
3 lb. Premium Washington State Red Delicious Apples
1 each Premium Large Vine Ripened Honeydew Melon
AFM May 2009 Fruit and Veggie Recipe Sheet

For $22, that’s a very strong deal, especially if you want to get fresh produce on the table and you’re struggling to make ends meet.

Another strong advantage of Angel Food Ministries is that they often distribute in central community locations (like churches) that are quite accessible for many families that may not have access to transportation to get to the grocery store. Using a church as a distribution center means that the distribution often occurs in the middle of a residential area, making it easier for many people to access the food – particularly those who need it the most.

Is It Right To Use This Service?
In terms of using this service, my biggest question is whether it’s a justifiable option. Quite obviously, this service is trying to target lower-income families who can really use the savings provided by the options made available through the ministry.

The question is whether or not it’s ethical – or socially appropriate – for a person with a higher income level who is simply trying to maximize every cent to take advantage of this service.

On the one hand, the service makes it clear that it’s intended for everyone. There are no requirements at all for people to take part in receiving food from Angel Food Ministries, and they claim that there is plenty of food to go around.

On the other hand, if you’re in a situation where you have a reasonably large monthly food budget, why would you choose to use this service? If you are making it your goal to feed yourself and your family a well-rounded, high quality diet, many of the options in the basic box from Angel Food Ministries probably do not fit the bill, making it much less of a savings for you.

Thus, I think the question really comes down to your own personal food choices. If you are in a tight financial place and the goal is to get sanitary and diverse food options on the table at the lowest cost possible for your family, Angel Food Ministries is where you should go – and you’re exactly the type of person the service was designed for. On the other hand, if you have enough of a food budget that you can make detailed conscious choices about what goes on your table and what does not, you’re likely better off going to the grocery store and the farmer’s market – which, again, is appropriate.

In other words, Angel Food Ministries somewhat self-regulates – if this is a good deal for your life situation, they’re ready and willing to help. For me, though, I’ll stick with my own meal planning, which gives me much more control over what goes on my table (albeit at a higher price – a price I’m willing to pay).

Angel Food Ministries as a Charity
As you can see, in large part, I support the work that Angel Food Ministries does on the ground in getting low cost foods to people who really need them. In fact, I had considered donating to Angel Food Ministries in the past – and, as I’ve mentioned before, that means I sat down to research how the charity itself worked.

What I found sent up a few pretty big red flags for me.

First of all, the charity is not listed with Charity Navigator, an impartial service that evaluates charities in terms of how they manage themselves internally and how much of their revenue actually goes towards charitable work. This is a basic step that many charities of any size take on – it’s the honest way to conduct a charity.

Second, the charity is being investigated by the FBI for reasons that are not being made clear by either the charity or the FBI. Here’s some details on the investigation.

Perhaps the biggest red flag, however, comes from MinistryWatch, a watchdog group for Christian-affiliated charities. It issued a “donor watch” for Angel Food Ministries, stating the following:

Angel Food Ministries is marketing to help individuals that are on the low economic side of the scale and in “need”; however, the leadership for the organization has higher salaries than the norm. In addition, the higher salaries consist of the leadership of individuals that are related. This is just for the known year of 2006, it is unknown of the more current years.

1. Wesley J. Wingo: $588,529
2. Linda Wingo: $544,043
3. Andrew Wingo: $529,014
4. Wesley Wingo: $454,673
5. L.M. Wingo: $384,694

Let alone the fact that these five people are related, the individual salaries are above and beyond what charities typically pay their employees, even large charities at the highest management levels.

Obviously, these discoveries are much more of interest to people who are considering donating to Angel Food Ministries. This should in no way prevent you from using Angel Food Ministries in your community.

My Final Take
On the ground, Angel Food Ministries provides a good service that many people really need – a lot of food at a very reasonable price at the expense of flexibility. For someone in a poor financial situation, Angel Food Ministries can really be a godsend.

However, as a broader charity, I would not donate to Angel Food Ministries when there are many highly ethical charities out there to contribute time and effort to. In many larger cities, there are local versions of Angel Food Ministries that you can donate to or be involved with – just ask around in your own community.

Yesterday, J.D. Roth at Get Rich Slowly posted an interesting article about whether repaying debt should be an obsession. His conclusion, to put it succinctly, was no:

When a person decides to make a lifestyle change — financial or otherwise — there’s a temptation GO ALL OUT. With the zeal of a new convert, you leap headlong into a life of thrift, for example, giving up everything you valued before.

There’s a problem with this.

Most people who leap from a lifestyle of deficit-spending to one of extreme frugality find the waters very, very cold. It’s a shock to the system. It feels oppressive. They struggle to stay afloat, but before long decide they’re going to sink rather than swim, so return to the warmer, familiar waters, the waters of debt.

I made several false starts before I found my way. I would decide to give up comics completely, or to never buy another computer game. These sorts of goals are foolish. Nobody has that kind of god-like self-control. Everyone needs an indulgence now and then.

Rather than quit cold turkey, I think the best way to begin a life of frugality is by taking small steps. Small steps eventually become big strides, but only after you’ve developed your frugal muscles.

I understand where he’s coming from here, and I think he’s speaking the truth about his experience in adopting a frugal lifestyle and overcoming debt. I also think that quite a few people will identify with this perspective – perhaps even a majority of people.

However, for a lot of people, laser-like focus is a key part of their personal finance success.

I find myself in this group. When I finally hit financial bottom, I dove into debt repayment and frugality with the fervor of a freshly-minted missionary, bent on converting the unwashed masses of my debts to the purity of clean financial living. I spent many long nights going over my bills, keeping track of every cent I spent, and reading every book I could find on personal finance. I spent my weekends trying every tactic I could find in those books, hoping to discover things that actually worked for me. In fact, The Simple Dollar was borne from this – I started it to simply share the things that were working for me and the things that were not.

It was only with that intensity that I was able to hammer away many of my worst habits and actually do the hard work that I needed to do to put my financial life in a better place. For me, day to day life is a series of patterns – and it’s hard work to change those patterns. It was only through serious intensity – yes, I would even call it obsession – that I was able to change a lot of patterns in a reasonably short amount of time.

Without that focus, I would have never found success. I might have been able to keep my head above water – or maybe not. One thing I do know – a leisurely approach to this would not have worked for me.

Gazelle intensity This is largely the same philosophy that Dave Ramsey espouses. As he puts it:

Gazelles are gentle creatures hunted by the fastest animal on earth, the cheetah. With the cheetah being so fast, you would think the gazelle would be extinct. However they’ve learned that the cheetah is only the fastest animal on earth while running in a straight line. So when being chased, the gazelle bobs and weaves and runs in circles until the cheetah gets tired and gives up.

It’s time to think like a gazelle. If you are a gazelle and the marketing and credit card companies are cheetahs, bob and weave and run; do whatever it takes to get away. When you get that new credit card application in the mail – you know, the one that promises low introductory interest rates and lots of bonuses – scream CHEETAH! and destroy it as quickly as you can!

What works for you? Every person is different, and different techniques work well for them. Some people learn from text, while others learn visually and still others from audio. Some people learn best by repeating lists of facts – others learn by figuring out the patterns.

In the same way, some people succeed by applying a laser-like intensity to changes in their life, while others succeed by dipping their toes in and gradually moving forward. There are different levels for each.

Here’s a great example of how it actually works on the ground. A while back, I wrote a list of 100 ways to start saving money. A person who succeeds by taking slow steps might try one or two of them, then try one or two more, bringing gradual change into their life – and that’s awesome! Others succeed by taking that list and trying to do as many as they can at once, hammering on them until many of them become new habits – and that’s also awesome!

In my opinion, the best personal finance advice is modular. In other words, people who move more slowly can take a piece at a time, while people with gazelle intensity can grab them all and dive in head first. I usually try to see both sides of the coin.

Which side of the coin are you on? Are you a practitioner of intense focus on your money and personal habits, or do you like to dip your toes into new tactics?

My twenty month old daughter’s favorite word is “yellow.” “What’s your favorite color, honey?” “Yellow!” “What do you want for supper?” “… yellow?” “What should I post about this morning, sweetie pie?” “YELLOW!”

So, to make her happy, this sentence is written in bright yellow. See, honey? Dad made something yellow for you.

Find a Mentor Using the DISC Method A good mentor that really matches who you are is a great find, and this is a pretty insightful way to evaluate potential mentors to find a good match. (@ studenomics)

How Much Did That Shower Cost? Use a Low-Flow Shower Head! Excellent analysis of the savings one can gain by using a low-flow shower head. In my own experience, there’s a happy balance to be found – the lowest flow ones out there are fairly annoying to me, but I don’t need to be drowned in torrential showers, either. (@ my life roi)

Interview with a Dave Ramsey Certified Counselor I thought this was actually a good insight into how the whole “Dave Ramsey certification” system actually works. I’m naturally a skeptic, I guess. (@ man vs. debt)

Why Do People Still Have Landlines? I thought this post outlined a few clear divisions in life experiences. For one, cell phones tend to not work in disasters when you need them the most – land lines hold up well, while you’re out of cell phone luck if something knocks down a tower or two. Another factor – in rural areas, cell phone reception is dodgy, so if you live rural, a land line is essential. So, no, it’s not so you can “make it more confusing for friends and family to keep track of all of your phone numbers.” Quite honestly, I rarely use my cell phone at all and I’ve strongly considered moving to a pay-as-you-go phone for the rare times I use it. (@ broke grad student)

The Cost of Driving Fast Excellent post that really illustrates the cost of driving fast in pure gas costs. This doesn’t include the risk of getting a speeding ticket (a very real risk – trust me). (@ bargain babe)

Will the “Great Recession” Trigger the End of Buy-and-Hold Investing? I see no real reason to not continue with buy-and-hold investing. If you lost 50% over the last two years and couldn’t afford that loss, the problem was asset allocation, not buy-and-hold. (@ millionaire mommy next door)

On Tuesday, the Senate passed the Credit Cardholders’ Bill of Rights Act of 2009, an act that will quickly be passed into law with the signature of President Obama, likely within the week. This bill has a huge number of ramifications for credit cards – for users who are late on their payments, for those who pay their bills on time, and perhaps even for the ability to use credit cards in stores.

Washington Wire summarizes the bill very succinctly:

Existing balances: Issuers cannot retroactively change the rate on an existing balance unless the account is 60 days delinquent.
Payments: A consumer payment above the minimum applies first to the balance with the highest rate.
Teaser rates: Issuers cannot raise rates for the first year after an account opened. Promotional rates must last at least six months.
Bills: Issuers must send a bill 21 days before the due date.
Over limit: Issuers cannot charge over-limit fees on credit cards unless the consumer has signed up to allow such transactions.
Minors: For consumers under 21 years old, a company must get the signature of a parent or another to take responsibility for the debt, or it must obtain proof that the under-21 consumer can repay credit.
Disclosure: Cardholders must get 45 days notice of change in terms.
Fees: Issuers cannot charge fees to pay by mail, phone, and electronic transfer or online, except for expedited service.
Gift cards: All gift cards must have at least a five-year life.

Meanwhile, The Wallet offers a few predictions for what this means:

“We’re in uncharted territory here,” says Curtis Arnold, head of CardRatings.com, a credit-card comparison site. Mr. Arnold says consumers can expect issuers to work overtime to lure high-end, high-volume clientele while adding fees and rate hikes for customers with less-than-stellar credit profiles.

The rationale is that credit-card issuers make money off interchange fees (fees merchants pay to card issuers). So customers who charge everything and pay off their balances are seen as less risky and still profitable by card issuers.

The future of rewards programs is also up in the air. Mr. Arnold advises cashing in reward and airline mile points, as their purchasing power has been on the decline in the last year or so. However, he points to new cards from brokerages like Charles Schwab and Fidelity, which offer higher cash-back rewards that lure customers to their brokerage products.

Mr. Arnold also advises those customers with existing balances to pay them off as soon as possible and consider transferring them to smaller banks and credit unions, which may be able to offer more generous rates and repayment terms. He, and others in the industry, expect interest rates on existing balances to keep climbing before the proposed legislation kicks in. (An optimistic guess would be that card issuers would have to comply nine months or a year from now.)

Something else to keep an eye on: Annual fees. The era of reward cards, or even non-reward cards, with no annual fees may be at an end. Stay tuned to notices from your card issuers and the changing fine print of your statement

So what does this mean for you?

First of all, these rules do help people avoid getting into trouble with credit cards. I applaud the change that requires minors to get parental approval or to prove they have the ability to repay before getting a card. I also like that all extra payments always go to the portion of the balance with the highest interest rate – no more shenanigans with companies applying overpayments to 0% balance transfers. Eliminating fees for different types of payment is also a plus.

But what else will change? It’s important to remember that the full ramifications of this bill won’t be seen immediately. Obviously, the credit card companies will try to keep their level of profits the same, which means that, inevitably, they’ll have to change their business in some ways. However, as Arnold noted above, they don’t want to kill the golden goose – the interchange fees that they rake in as a result of wide credit card use.

So, beyond the immediate impact for credit card users noted above, I’m going to make a few predictions about how this bill will affect things over the long term.

Interest rates will keep climbing. The days of easy low-interest credit are ending. That means the role of the credit card will begin to change as smart consumers begin to use credit cards more like charge cards – they pay off the balance in full at the end of each month.

What this might mean for you: Paying down your credit card balances as soon as possible is more important than ever! If you’re carrying a credit card balance, now is the time to start buckling down and wiping out that debt. If you aren’t carrying a debt on your cards, don’t start one – stick to spending less than you earn and keep using the credit card as an intelligent tool.

The credit card syndicates (Visa, Mastercard, etc.) will seek to raise interchange fees as a first line of attack. Credit cards work most effectively when lots of consumers have them and then expect this service from merchants. Think about it from Target’s perspective, for example – if half of their customers use credit cards to pay, they’re somewhat tied to offering that service to customers. Thus, I predict credit card companies will use that to their advantage and raise interchange fees, particularly on large retailers.

What this might mean for you: Many merchants will attempt to recoup this increase in interchange fees by passing the cost along to the consumer, so I would expect a slight bump in prices – 1% or so, spread out over many purchases and items. For most people, this will largely go unnoticed and will be seen as normal inflation.

Credit card issuers will get clever with fees, but annual fees won’t return. Most consumers have come to expect that their credit card will have no annual fees, so I don’t believe these will return in wide use. Instead, the companies will see other avenues for fees – cards that require a minimum number of uses per month, cards that have fees to enroll in particular rewards programs, and so on.

What this might mean for you: You’ll have to be more careful with credit card offers in the future. Also, when there are updates to your terms, you’ll need to read them carefully. Again, if you keep your balance paid, your credit will be good, so you can walk away from any cards that try to slip sneaky fees in on you.

I don’t believe rewards programs will go away. I would expect, though, that rewards programs will become more tied to specific “partner” retailers, like Target and Amazon, and away from more general programs like Drivers’ Edge. Why? Merchant-specific cards encourage loyalty to those merchants, and that has quite a bit of value to the merchants – those aren’t programs they will want to see go away.

What this might mean for you: Don’t be surprised if you find some of your rewards programs changing, particularly when your current card expires. For now, though, stick with what works for you.

Any thoughts or predictions on this new world of credit card rules?